Feeding Facts

BY JIMMY PARKER

With today’s economic and environmental factors, we have seen or are seeing a significant sell- off of the cow herd nationally and we should see a significant build back within the next couple of years. This makes heifer development a topic that should be discussed. Growing heifers correctly is a key to long term success in a normal cow herd cycle and as we trend toward restocking the brood cow herd, it becomes even more critical.

So, what is meant by the term heifer development? It refers to growing heifers from weaning until at least breeding but more often until they are bred back after having their first calf. Many things during that period are important and will help determine how productive they will be as mature cows and how long they stay in the cow herd. It does cost a significant amount to raise a heifer so doing the small things to maximize their longevity makes a great deal of sense.

A heifer needs to be 65 to 70% of her mature weight at breeding and at least 85% of mature weight at calving. They have to be grown at a healthy rate to achieve these goals without getting the heifer too fat or not supplying enough nutrients to cause calving issues.

The easiest way to formulate a plan is to do

the math backward. Decide when the heifers need to calve and realize that they need to be 85% of their mature weight at that time. That would be 1,020 pounds if the mature weight is 1,200. Then back up 9 or 10 months and realize that they need to weigh 70% of mature weight at that point. That would be 840 pounds if the mature weight is 1,200 pounds. Now that those figures are in mind, weaning weight and how many days until breeding and calving are added to the equation.

If we assume that heifers will be weaned at 7 months and weigh 500 pounds, and we want them to calve at 2 years old, then we have about 7 months to get them to a breeding weight and about 10 more months to get them to a calving weight. Seven months is approximately 200 and 10 days to get those heifers from 500 pounds to a breeding weight of 840 pounds. So basically, the heifers need to gain 1 and 1/2 pounds each day to reach that target. That can be done on good, winter annual grasses or by supplementing with good feeds such as CPC Developer at a low rate of 7 to 10 pounds of feed per head per day. Whichever development program is used, the heifers need to be monitored so they don’t get too fat while gaining enough weight to reach the target.

Once the heifers are exposed or bred, you have almost 10 months to get them to a weight where they are capable of calving successfully. We calculated that they should weigh 840 pounds at breeding and 1,020 at calving. This means they need to gain another 200 pounds in just under 300 days. That is fairly easy to do given decent forages. Supplementation can be needed during times of cold weather or lack of quality forages. Stimu-lyx Tubs, Formax Brood Cow or CPC Developer would be a good fit at low rate when feed is needed. Feeding at a heavier rate earlier in this period and a lighter rate as calving approaches is probably a good idea if the heifers were fed heavily enough early on.

There are other factors that are also important. General health decisions such as using dewormers and vaccines should be discussed with your veterinarian. A good mineral should be provided at all times. Having access to a good mineral will boost the heifer’s immune system and growth rate. It can be important in bone formation and so many other ways.

One of the often-overlooked management decisions that influence the longevity of the heifer is how she is managed after calving. If possible, the first-calf heifers need to be managed as a group away from the mature cow herd. The younger, lighter-weight first-calf heifers will get pushed aside and will not get to hay or feed as well as they could if they are managed separately. Doing this will significantly increase the success rate of getting those heifers bred back for a second calf in a timely manner.

If heifers are fed correctly to the right target weights, are monitored to prevent too much fat, given the animal health procedures needed, and the correct vitamins and minerals, they will likely calve on time and have a really good chance to make productive cows with a long life expectancy. If any of the main factors are ignored, the chance of early culling goes up considerably and recouping the cost of raising the heifer is far less likely. Treat these heifers like they are your future, and your future will likely be a lot brighter. Good, young cows should be very valuable as the process of replacing all the cattle culled this year begins.